Design

Originally Grumman designed the F3F, a biplane, that was to be used in case the monoplane F2 Buffalo failed.

The US Navy chose the Buffalo over the Wildcat in June 1938. However, the Wildcat was still considered a good plane and another prototype was ordered in September 1938. This resulted in the XF4F-3 prototype. By December 1941 the decision was reversed to use the Wildcat over the Buffalo.

Cockpit

Visibility wasn't very good and was cramped.

Engine

Initially the two-stage blower caused problems and was later replaced by a one-stage blower.

Undercarriage

The wheels retracted half way to fit against the fuselage.

Prototype

The XF4F-2 was first flown on September 2, 1937, by Robert L. Hall.

The second prototype, XF4F-3, was well liked and 54 were ordered.

The first F4F-3 flew in February 1940. The first F4F-4 flew on April 14, 1941.

The FM-1 first flew in August 1942 / September 1, 1942. The FM-2 flew in November 1942.

Production

In August 1939, 44 / 54 F4F-3s were ordered. Twenty two of these were delivered by the end of 1940.

Production of the F4F moved from Grumman to General Motors in 1942. It was decided to continue production of the FM-2 concurrently with the F6F Hellcat and F4U Corsairs as the FM-2s were more suitable for escort carrier operations.

Grumman F4F-3: 285

Martlet I: 100

Martlet II: 90

Grumman F4F-3A / Martlet III: 95

Grumman F4F-4: 1,168, 1,169

Grumman F4F-7: 21

Grumman Wildcat IV: 220

FM-1 / Wildcat V: 1,060, 1,127, 1,462

Manufacturer: General Motors

FM-2 / Wildcat VI: 4,777

Manufacturer: General Motors

Total: 7,808, 7,825, 7,885, ~8,000

Grumman: 1,988

General Motors FMs: 5,237, 5,837, 5,904

Manufacturing location: Detroit, Michigan

Variants

Grumman XF4F-2: The first prototype to be flown. Had Twin Wasp engine (1,050 HP).

Grumman XF4F-3: Had the two stage supercharged XR-1830-76 installed and could go 333.5 mph / 537 kph. Appeared in February 1939 / February 12, 1939. Had changes to wings and tail.

Grumman F4F:

Grumman F4F-3:

Grumman F4F-3A: Had R-1830-90 installed.

Grumman F4F-4: Main production model. Wings could be manually folded.

Grumman F4F-7: Long range reconnaissance developed but was replaced by F6F. Its range was 3,500 miles / 5,633 km.

FM-1 / Wildcat Mk V: Produced by General Motors. License built F4F-4. Had a taller tail fin. Had a Wright R-1820 engine.

FM-2 / Wildcat Mk VI: Produced by General Motors. Based on the XF4F-8. Had a taller tail fin. Had a Wright R-1820 engine. Had four 12.7 mm machine guns and could carry two 250 lb / 113 kg bombs or six 5" / 127 mm rockets. Intended for use on escort carriers. Deliveries began in September 1943 and ended in August 1945.

Usage

Early Delivery

The first 22 were delivered to the VF-4 and VF-7.

United States

The first used of the F4F Wildcat by the United States Navy was at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked. The Navy had 183 F4F-3s and the Marine Corps had 65 F4F-3As.

The first US Navy ace was Lt. Edward "Butch" O'Hare, who shot down five Japanese bombers in five minutes.

With a score of 19 Japanese warplanes shot down, Major John L. Smith was the top Wildcat ace.

France

The French ordered 81 Wildcats in 1939. These were later transferred to the Royal Navy and called the Martlet.

United Kingdom

Was initially named the Martlet but was later changed to the Wildcat in early 1944. There were 81 Wildcats that went into service with the Royal Navy in the summer of 1940.

Orders of F4Fs by France and Greece were delivered to the Fleet Air Arm. These were received in July 1940.

The Wildcat was the first American fighter in British service to shoot down an enemy plane, a Ju 88 over Scapa Flow in December 1940.

The Fleet Air Arm received 312 FM-1s and around 700 FM-2s.

Royal Canadian Air Force

The RCAF also used the F4F Wildcats.

Escort Carrier Duty

As the F4F Wildcats became obsolete during the last two years of World War II, they were still used on Escort Carriers as they had a small size with the folded wings.